Little Lord Fauntleroy

Well! I think an easy way to write off why men used women's pen names and vice versa is that they were simply jealous of each other. Or rather, each other's audience. I would think the authors gender matters to some of this time period because of social dictations. Men were to act manly, and read manly things, written by men and the same can be said for women. If woman writer wanted to write a novel, it would most likely have been easier to do it under a man's name. Also, if a man wanted to right a more sensitive story, he might use a woman's name.

One example that I can think if is on pages 340 and 341. The author describes this youth as being beautiful. A typical male writer would probably see his strength or wit before his beauty. It is the descriptions of the young Cedie, that made me suspicious of the writers sex in the first place.

What difference does it make then? I think the biggest difference is that people make assumptions about what might happen in the story, the details mentioned and not mentioned, and most importantly the overall message of the story. I have found as a very general rule that woman writers tend to be more sympathetic to the characters of a story. I also like to believe they kind find the beauty in everyday life more often. Instances that we can't tell whether the author is male or female I think are very special too. In these cases we can only judge the words that that author wrote. In these cases we might pay more attention to the overall message of the story.

Tom Sawyer

I can't help but feel an attraction to the chapter in Tom Sawyer entitled "Busy at War and Love". This whole chapter makes me think of a few things. First the common saying "all is fair in love and war" which is fairly obvious, because Tom is so good at playing with his aunts emotions. This ties in to another not as common saying derived from the first that refers to any relationship as "the battle of who can care less".

On page 419 we see Tom helpless to his boyish crush on "a new girl". Just a week ago we see him as the happiest boy in the world, in love, with another girl. The word fickle comes quick to mind. However, we see that the new girl still has most of the power in their non existent relationship. I attribute it to the fact that she basically cares less. I like how Mark Twain is able to play out simple interactions between Tom and various characters that actually represent the same idea that we experience in adulthood.

We can see how Tom can use his aunts emotions against her on page 421. She gives him a belt for something he is wrongly accused of. She feels guilt Tom knows this, and uses it for what it's worth, just a little bit more power in the relationship. His aunt cares for him very much so, she has less power.

I feel that there couldn't be a more perfect title for this chapter. It's central themes of how all is fair in love and war are expressed through Tom. He is powerless towards the girl he is captivated with and, holds a lot of clout when it comes to his aunt. There is even a scene in which Tom even plays the role of a general in a mock battle with a friend in which they arrange the next time the will have a dispute and, what it will be about. It's difficult as an adult to navigate one's way through different relationships, perhaps Tom is a prime example of what not to be like for children. Just a few thoughts, enjoy!

Ragged Dick

In class, we discussed the stark contrast between typical behavior, manorisms, and allowances for girls and boys during this time. Girls were expected to excel in domestic capacities including, sewing, cooking, cleaning, and generally maintaining the household. No fits or bouts of extreme emotional distress were part of what young girls were supposed to do, because they were supposed to be pleasant at all times. Also, we see that girls need "props" in order to be young ladies. These include a number of things from elaborate dresses and shoes, to writing materials and sewing kits (this took up pages 42 -49 from the text.) I feel as though Susan Warner's, The Wide Wide World is the most extreme example of what it was to be an almost ideal girl of the time. However in many respects, this makes her uninteresting, because she is an ideal, and therefore not easily related to by a large audience. And then there was Capitola, who definitely won me over with her charm and wit. She is a girl however (as is decided in New York) and therefore must have things for a girl of her class and so on page 181. After reading Ragged Dick however we can see right away that boys are allowed more faults than girls. I feel we can assume that this also means men were allowed more faults than women as long as the family was taken care of financially and as long as he wasn't a drunkard. What's more it seems to me as though they aren't considered faults as much as they are traits for men and boys, rather aspects of personality. Men were expected to work hard, be smart, and make enough money not just to take care of themselves but their families too. Women on the other hand didn't go out nearly as much since most of their work was at home.

These young boys in Ragged Dick have faults, and the author is very quick to point them out, yet, he is also clear in pointing out the good aspects of these boy's personalities. This is a rhetorical strategy that appeals to the audience because Dick isn't perfect, just like the average reader. However, he did have some very strong morals when it came to certain issues so readers of this story might be encouraged to still hold fast to certain morals that the text is trying to reaffirm to the audience. This is clearly seen when Dick says at the start of the story, "You don't catch me stealin', if that's what you mean." (p.334) I think the text is trying to say through these characters, that every person has faults, some more series than others, but it is possible to find 'good' even in the oddest of places.